The Importance Of Family
by Jj965
Summary: AU In which Petunia does not tolerate Vernon's behaviour, Harry is troubled, Hermione is searching, and life is difficult.
1. Chapter 1

**I don't write but this idea has been floating around in my head for a little while now. If there are grammatical errors or spelling ones do let me know, the lack of description regarding the setting is intentional.**

 **This is an AU in which Petunia doesn't tolerate Vernon being abusive to Harry. Dudley stays with Vernon for reasons that I'll get to eventually if I continue this but other than that everything should explain itself?**

 **I don't own anything obviously**

-TIOF-

The radio played in the kitchen, the music barely reaching his room. His eyes were locked on something that floated just in front of him.  
He sat perfectly still, calmly observing the odd patterns of colour that danced across his vision.  
Colours that he _knew_ nobody else saw, colours that twisted and twirled whenever someone spoke or laughed or shouted.

"Harry? Get up, you don't have time to be lazing around," A harsh orange sliced through the colours of the music as Petunia called for him "you have to see Doctor Carr today and I won't be late for another appointment this month. You do know how important this is, don't you?"

His reply had been soft, as it always was when he was made to speak. "Yes Aunt." He stood from his bed and pulled his overly large sleeves up so he could slip his shoes on, the floorboards creaking slightly with his movements.

Petunia stood opposite his door, her face softening as he stepped out of his room and into the corridor. He was a small boy, shorter than the children in his class by a noticeable margin.  
She fought down the urge to smile at him, to smile at the small boy with the gentle features and soft voice who had been left in her care almost ten years ago.

"I'll drive us there, shouldn't be much traffic at this time of day. We can go for ice cream afterwards if you'd like?" she offered, hoping he said yes.

Harry looked up at his aunt, at the lady who had tried her hardest to ensure he was happy for as long as he could remember. He smiled for her and nodded slightly.

"I'd like that Aunt, thank you."

Petunia watched as his eyes followed patterns that only he could see, her sister's eyes slowly sweeping back and forth as sounds danced in front of her nephew.  
And how odd it was to see those eyes everyday knowing that she had been wrong, that she had let her fear control her decisions and in doing so ruined her relationship with Lily.  
Lily who was like the sun, full of passion and joy and _heat_. Lily who had woven _spells_ , who spoke of flying brooms and werewolves and messy black hair.  
Lily who had loved her family so completely that she had died for her child.  
Lily who had sent a message in her final moments, talking of love and protection. Of family and forgiveness. Of hope and pride. Of trust.

Harry blinked and she was snapped out of her haze, memories returning to their rightful place.

She turned on her heel and led him to the car, unlocking the doors and waiting for him to get in and put his seat belt on.  
The midday sun cast a pleasant warmth through the glass of the windscreen as the radio played in the car.  
As she reversed she did her best to ignore the fact that neither of them had turned it on.

-TIOF-

Doctor Carr brushed a strand of brown hair from her face as she observed Harry Potter standing in the doorway of her office. She was sat at her desk in a rather comfortable office chair, across from her was an overly large sofa that was covered in cushions.  
The boy was her favourite patient, his view of the world differed vastly from her own and she occasionally found herself wishing to see things as he did.

/

 _Harry had first been brought to her when he was six, complaining that his head hurt whenever he was in the playground at school. Hearing the child explain that the colours were overwhelming when the other children screamed and laughed had been confusing at first, his condition wasn't very common and was often dismissed as nonsense. But he had insisted that he could see when people spoke. His little hands had balled into fists as he told her that how she spoke in the same green as the grass outside of their practice, that his aunt was a particularly harsh orange that made him confused because she was so kind._

 _She had listened to him talk of his cousin and uncle who both spoke the same shockingly bright green, a colour he hated almost as much as he hated the individuals who produced it._

/

"Doctor Carr?" Harry's soft voice broke her from her musings and she turned to face him. Blue eyes locked with green, a shiver travelling down her spine as she was struck by how they seemed to glow.

"Hello Harry, come in! How's my favourite ten-year old today? Are you excited for your birthday?" her voice was filled with the joy of someone doing what they loved and the smile was audible.

"I'm fine, Doctor Carr. Aunt Petunia says that she's taking me for ice cream after our appointment and then we're staying up until midnight!" his excitement was easy to hear as he sat down on the sofa and sank backwards into it. "I can't wait to start secondary, hopefully Dudley won't be there."

"And how are things with your cousin?" Doctor Carr already knew what the answer would be, but she still hoped that one day the broken family would find a way to not hate each other.

Harry grimaced as he thought of his aunt's son, of his cousin, of the boy who tripped him in the hallway and laughed at him. "I don't hate him but he hates me, Vernon hates me and Dudley hates me because of him and it isn't fair. He still tries to bully me but everyone has been paying more attention since _that_ happened," Here he rubbed at his sleeve covered arms and she felt a pain in her chest. "I think he's spending more time with his friends now that it's summer because I don't see him at the park as often which is lovely. It's nice without him their."

Her pen gliding across the page as she took notes, Doctor Carr motioned for Harry to continue.

"I've been really good recently and I've been using the red marker you suggested! Aunt Petunia sits with me when I do it, she says it's so I know I'm not alone and that she loves me. I really appreciate how much she does for me..." Harry once again rubbed awkwardly at his arms and she felt the pain in her chest again.

"That is absolutely wonderful Harry! I'm very proud of you. Do you think you'll be able to handle seeing me less often?" At the boy's slightly hesitant nod she elaborated for him. "You've been doing amazingly well Harry and I think you'll be able to stop seeing me entirely by the time you're twelve."

"Really? Could I still come and see you if things got worse?" his voice seemed even softer than usual and she could tell that he was nervous about taking the next step in his recovery.

"Harry, you've come very far from where you were when I first met you. Your Aunt has kept you away from that man, and while there's nothing we can do about his son you seem to be handling yourself very well. And there are less incidents now, aren't there?" She once again watched him rub his arms and wondered if he would ever be free of the nervous habit, or if she would ever be free of the tightening in her chest whenever he did so.

"Yes Doctor Carr, it's been more than two weeks since the last one."

"I'll still be here when you need me Harry but you don't need me as often now." An alarm beeped from somewhere and she sighed. That's the end of today's session Harry, I've already booked your next one for the twenty-second of December, Petunia assured me that she'd bring you. I look forward to seeing you even healthier then, take care Harry."

Harry rose from his chair and smiled at Doctor Carr, he very rarely had people believing in him and it made his heart soar. "I'll see you in December then Doctor Carr. Take care." He opened the door to her office and stepped out into the corridor, shutting it gently behind him. Aunt Petunia was sitting in a chair waiting for him, humming gently to herself and filling the corridor in her orange.

-TIOF-

Petunia stared at the mail the next morning, knowing what was coming. It had happened with Lily too and she had no intention of interfering with the wizards. Harry would attend Hogwarts, he would be a great wizard, he would make her proud; he would make _Lily_ proud.  
She collected the envelope that would change everything then strolled into the kitchen, dropping the letter onto the table she got to work cooking breakfast for her family. Eggs and bacon for her, no bacon for him but an extra slice of toast in addition to a cup of milk for Harry and the coffee that she thrived on.  
The floorboards creaked as the object of her thoughts made his way down the stairs of their home, his steps were as gentle as his voice and she found herself picturing him as a kitten, all white fur and green eyes. The laugh that followed filled the house with the sounds of joy.  
Harry reached the bottom of the stairs and was treated to something his aunt rarely let him see; she was laughing. Not the laughter she used when Vernon was present in the past, but real laughter filled with joy and humour and life. The harsh orange danced again but it was tinged with a red he had come to associate with the panicked words of his mother that haunted him in his dreams. This was family, loving each other despite their differences.

"Morning Aunt, is it today?" Soft but excited, speaking a touch faster than usual.

"Good morning Harry," the laughter was still evident in her voice as was the smile on her face. "the letters arrived just this morning but you'll not be opening them until after breakfast."

They sat and ate in the comfortable silence of a family, Petunia humming along to the radio that always played when Harry was home while she ate. Her humming stopped as Harry finished up the last of his milk and reached excitedly for his letter.  
He knew what it said word for word, it was the exact same as his mother's only with his name and address instead of hers. His heart soared at the prospect of doing what she had done, of weaving spells and making potions and learning to fly and of _magic_! He glanced up from the letter to look pleadingly at his aunt.

"Can we go today?" his eyes wide in anticipation.

"I've already taken the day off work Harry, we can do anything you want to do today." The smile that filled his face was returned by one of her own.

"I'll get ready quickly Aunt! Can we get extra books while we're there? I've read through all of the ones that were left." Harry was already washing his dishes by the time he'd finished asking for more books, excitement filling the air with a dusting of his magic. The air seemed to shimmer with floating gold as he rinsed off his dishes.

Petunia cleared her throat gently to remind him that magic wasn't to be used or let free while they were at home. The gold faded immediately and she heard Harry mutter an apology as he raced upstairs to get ready for their trip to London.


	2. Chapter 2

**I wasn't expecting anyone to actually be interested in this in all honesty.**  
 **This next chapter takes place at roughly the same time as the first right until the end, I hope you all enjoy it too.**  
 **I'm also not sure what to do in regards to reviews, I appreciate them and I know some authors reply but would that be what you want? Let me know.**

-TIOF-

The knock on her door woke her from a fitful sleep and she quickly sat up, feeling the sweat from her nightmares soaking her pyjamas. Her throat felt dry and she was sure that she had been screaming in her sleep again.  
The knock came again, harder this time and accompanied by her mother's irate voice. "Get up Hermione! I don't have the time to deal with your theatrics this morning. It's bad enough you're forcing me to take you to London to go shopping for your rubbish." Her mother was in a bad mood again and Hermione felt her heart beat quicken in fear. Bad moods never ended well.

"I'm sorry mother, I'll be right out. Do I have time for breakfast?" she had stood from the bed and was hurriedly making her way to the door, intent on washing the sweat from her body.

"I've told you not to call me that anymore! No daughter of mine would be involved in something so unnatural." Disappointment coloured her words, cutting into her only child like a blade.

Hermione felt the desire to sob welling up inside of her and tried her best to force it down. She knew that her mother didn't approve, that she wanted nothing to do with a child who possessed magic.  
It had been almost a year since the Professor had arrived at their door with explanations for the odd happenings that centred on the bushy-haired 11-year-old.  
It had been almost a year since her mother had decided that Hermione was no longer her child, merely a stranger that she cared for.  
It had been almost a year since her mother had stopped being one and became Sarah Granger instead.

"Yes Sarah. I'll be as quick as I can, sorry." Hermione's voice was as steady as she could make it while she walked past Sarah and into the bathroom, towel in hand.  
She waited until she heard footsteps moving away before taking a deep shuddering breath and reaching towards the taps of the family bath, knowing the running water hid the sounds of her sobbing from anyone outside.

-TIOF-

Hermione sat quietly in Sarah's car, her eyes focused firmly on the streets passing by outside. The radio played just loud enough for her to catch snippets of the news; apparently there had been a fire in South London and reports of people in fancy dress rushing into the blaze. Her mother made jokes at the idea of that sort being burnt in the fire and Hermione had to fight down the desire to snap at her.  
It wasn't fair that her mother treated her this way, that she expected Hermione to act as if everything was normal and she wasn't hurting. Sarah had been a lot better before the Professor had arrived, leaving Hermione mostly alone and ignoring the odd occurrences. But Professor McGonagall had arrived and everything had gotten worse. Her mother had treated the knowledge of Hermione's magic as an explanation for her husband's sudden death, had taken her anger and sadness out on a child not yet old enough to handle the emotions that she was feeling.

The young girl blinked and tried to clear her head of those thoughts, trying instead to concentrate on the hope of a happier future at a new school. Her mother had refused to take her shopping last year and so she was about to make her first trip into the magical world, a trip she was assured she would be making alone. She looked out of the window again to see that the car had stopped near to the pub that she knew her mother couldn't see.

Her mother cleared her throat and began to speak to her in a voice devoid of love. "Hermione we're there. I'm giving you £200 and you'll be staying at that Leafy Cauldron place the Professor told us about. I don't want to see you again until I pick you up next summer, nor do I want to have any of those filthy owls coming into my home. Do you understand?" She paused and waited for Hermione to nod before continuing with her instructions. "Be thankful that I'm even doing this for you, anybody else would have left you to fend for yourself. Now get out of my car!"

Hermione unbuckled her seat belt and quickly opened the car door, sliding out and twisting to close it behind. Her mother's hand held four £50 notes and she gently took them from her, making sure that they didn't fall. She tucked them into the pocket of the jeans she was wearing and opened her mouth to thank her mother only to see the window winding up as the car pulled away.

She felt like crying again but didn't want to make a scene in the middle of London, especially as she had no way of explaining why she'd been practically abandoned by her mother. Taking a deep breath to calm herself down, Hermione turned away from the street and strode towards the Leaky Cauldron with confidence that she didn't truly have.  
Pushing open the door and stepping forward with purpose had taken all of Hermione's confidence away and now she was acutely aware of how much she stood out surrounded by cloaks, robes and pointy hats. She hesitantly made her way towards the barkeep, a man who seemed to be cleaning pint glasses by hand instead of using magic, and cleared her throat before asking for his help.

"Excuse me sir? Would you be able to tell me how to get into Diagon Alley? I'm a muggleborn you see and the Professor forgot to explain it to me..." Her statement hadn't been a lie exactly, Professor McGonagall had explained it to her mother but never directly to Hermione.

"School shopping then?" The barkeep had a warm voice that made her feel at ease, he placed his glass down and stepped out from behind his bar. Walking over towards a door that seemed to lead out into a beer garden the man introduced himself to Hermione. "I'm Tom, this beauty is my pub; oldest one in all of London! And this!" Here he gestured to a brick wall just outside of the pub with his wand (how had he pulled it out without her noticing?) which appeared to be their destination. "This is the entrance to Diagon, get ready to be speechless eh?" His wand tapped at certain bricks and the wall parted into an archway that exposed a bustling street full of more oddly dressed people.

"This is amazing! How does it all stay hidden?" Hermione's eyes darted from shop to shop, taking in her first real sight of her new world. Her eyes were drawn to two people who stood out in the sea of robes and she was sure they were like her, the dress the lady was wearing was enough of a give away but the boy she was with was bouncing just as excitedly as Hermione was sure she was. Turning to thank Tom, she saw him smiling at her excitement and felt her cheeks flush slightly. "Thank you very much Mr Tom! Professor McGonagall told me that you have rooms available? Would I be able to rent one when I return?"

Tom raised a thinning eyebrow at the girl and considered why she'd be needing a room at a pub she'd never been too but thought better of asking, everyone had their secrets and he wasn't one to pry too deeply. "Of course miss, if you make your way down to the end of this street you'll find Gringotts which is the goblin bank; they'll change your money for you. It's 3 sickles a night for a room with breakfast."

"Thank you very much Mr Tom, I'll be back after I've finished shopping. Hopefully I'll have enough left over, the Professor didn't know the exchange rate for our currency to yours." She nodded to him in what she hoped was a grownup fashion and marched into the unknown, hoping to find the two people who looked as out-of-place as her.

With a strengthened resolve she stepped off to see the goblins at their bank.

-TIOF-

Hermione stepped out of the potioneers store still feeling uncomfortable with the treatment she'd received from not just the goblins but also the witches and wizards, she tried to convince herself that it was because she was young and alone but she knew that it had nothing to do with her age. She could see the way they looked disgusted with what she was wearing. It cut into her young heart, knowing that her own people were treating her like her mother did. She had hoped that this would be different, that she would find a place to belong here. She felt herself sob as her feet took her towards her last stop of the day, the dusty wand shop that she'd been so excited to visit earlier.

' _This wasn't fair!_ ' she thought to herself, she hadn't done anything wrong but here she was being treated like a criminal! Like she wasn't supposed to be here! Maybe her mother had been right? Maybe she didn't deserve to be accepted after what had happened.

"Um excuse me? Are you alright? It's just that you're crying and you aren't with an adult and my Aunt told me to see if you needed help..." At the soft voice Hermione looked up, her brown eyes locked with the most vibrant green she'd ever seen in her life. In front of her was a boy about her age, he was slightly shorter than her and much thinner than she thought any person should be. Her hands wiped furiously at her face and she looked past him to see the lady she'd noticed earlier looking on with worry on her face.

Hermione cleared her throat before answering the boy. "I'm just slightly overwhelmed, it's all been a bit much for me. I didn't realise that I'd stand out this much and my robes won't be ready until tomorrow and I just felt so lost!" She looked him up and down and was shocked by how pale his skin was, he looked as if he didn't get any sun at all and then there was his hair! She didn't know hair could be that colour, it seemed almost like her eyes were playing tricks on her.

The boy smiled shyly at her and his eyes seemed to follow something in front of her face as she spoke, she couldn't see anything but thought that perhaps he was just nervous and couldn't bring himself to look her in the eyes again.

"I'm Harry, would you like to come with us? We're about to get my wand and my Aunt Petunia doesn't think you should be alone in Diagon, some of the people here aren't very nice apparently." His hand reached out and she was struck by the fact that his aunt hadn't spoken at all during their exchange. She also realised that he was wearing a jumper at least 2 sizes too big for him, his sleeves had been pulled up slightly so his hands weren't completely hidden and she stopped herself from asking why he was wearing something so ill-fitting.

"I'd appreciate that, thank you very much. I'm Hermione Granger, it's nice to meet you Harry, Ms Petunia." She straightened her back and assured herself that this new world couldn't be all bad if there were people who wanted to help a stranger.

As she stepped forward towards her new acquaintance she would have sworn she heard him whisper something but quickly put the thought out of her head, Diagon was busy and the voice could have come from anyone.


End file.
